No Fewer Than 6 Perish in Crowd Crush at Ghanaian Armed Forces Enlistment Drive

No fewer than six individuals have died during a stampede at a armed forces enlistment event held in a sports arena in the West African nation.

The midweek "devastating" incident seems to have been caused by "a sudden rush of candidates who breached security protocols and stormed the entrances," announced a release from the nation's military.

Twenty-two others were injured, among them five who are in serious state.

Thousands had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the capital, the capital, with the aspiration of enlisting in the armed forces.

Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the most recent government statistics indicate, and such enlistment drives typically attract massive gatherings and often result in disorderly situations.

The deadline to apply for this recruitment was prolonged for a week to accommodate more applicants, as some had experienced challenges in the process.

Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.

The nation's leader John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.

Order has been restored, and the recruitment exercise has now started.